I'm a travel, food and wine, adventure, and cross-cultural writer. I am also a cultural anthropologist. I surf, paint, play music, practice yoga, hike and love to cook. I also like to find and try that little-known wine that is made by a person passionate about life and the earth. I'm active with the Surfrider Foundation, working with them to clean up our oceans, educate the public about the beauty of green lifestyles, and to replace plastic bag use with terrific reusable alternatives for shopping.

I have two new travel books out:

The Spiritual Traveler Spain--A Guide to Sacred Sites and Pilgrim Routes, is a celebration of the truly sacred and spiritual places, traditions, peoples, and roads of Spain. It is a non-denominational and deeply anthropological and folkloric travel book on Spain’s prehistoric, pagan, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim past. It is also a spiritual exploration of the country’s diverse present, such as in emerging communities dedicated to Buddhism, Hinduism, animistic Earth-based spiritualities, as well as current revivals of the land’s connection to the three Abrahamic faiths. Each chapter explores a region, a thematic route, and the most vibrant spiritual life of that area.

More info:
http://www.amazon.com/Spiritual-Traveler-Spain-Sacred-Pilgrim/dp/1587680475/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1260607889&sr=1-1

Historic Walking Guides Madrid is an unexpected walking guide to Madrid's most fascinating history, from medieval to recent times. It also includes a walk through the city's wine history and taverns, walks in the footsteps of famous writers and artists, from Cervantes to Hemingway and Goya to Sorolla, and even ghost stories and unsolved mysteries.

More info:
http://www.amazon.com/Historic-Walking-Guides-Madrid-Bahrami/dp/0955928168/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1259690238&sr=1-1-fkmr2